I don't really see much of a difference between Sculpey versus Fimo and other brands other than price. I've only bought Sculpey III and have been satisfied with the little knick-knacks I've been making.

Is there any difference between the various brands? Maybe how it dries or how it's easier/more difficult to sculpt? Or is one brand better for bigger projects rather than smaller projects?

There's a sale at JoAnns for clay during Labor Day weekend so I thought I would want to stock up on more clay and learn about different brands.

I've only worked with the various numbered Sculpeys, too, but I've heard that Fimo is a little firmer. Sculpey is really soft and easy to mold but when you try to press clay together it gets smooshed, while Fimo doesn't mold as easily but holds up to pressure. But I don't think there's a problem with using both on the same project, like pressing Sculpey eyes on a Fimo head. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.

__________________
"Madness? This! Is! Cosplay!" --Corrupted quote from 300 (2007) using Movie Quote Generator
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Creativity is a bit like pornography; it is hard to define, but we think we know it when we see it. (Mitchell, Inouye, & Blumenthal, 2003)

I agree, SailorKnight. Fimo is a little firmer and takes more effort to knead and mold. Sculpey is much softer and easier to use. Other than that, the only difference is the colors that are available ^.^

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Fimo is not that firm that you won't be able to cut through it. I personally use Fimo for items such as teeth on a mascot head, or claws which need to be durable.

Fimo (the 'mini' kind) comes already 'pre-sliced', meaning thats a deep line throughout the clay block so you can separate them. The Fimo's slice-lines are more definite than Sculpey's.

Both work just as good though, so its kinda personal preference. I hope I answered your question, I was abit confused at it.

So why could I cut through my Fimo?

It DOES work. I only want to know if you can do it with sculpey, cut through it with something, and then get it flat and not... "round" (that the knife or razor makes it "a straight wall (side)" and not sinks through and... smash it oO')

[Edit]: I got no idea how that smiley ended up up there xD
*and thanks for the answer Red*

Fimo is definitely harder to sculpt as mentioned above. The other notable difference is its durability after firing. Fimo cooks a lot harder than Sculpey. Sculpey can be cut and sanded with ease after firing and can also crack or break if not treated with care. Fimo on the other hand is very difficult to cut after firing. It is very hard and is a great choice for items that need to be very strong. Fimo also burns more easily, so keep a close eye on it. Another difference is related to painting. Fimo comes in lots of different colors whereas Sculpey only comes in a few. Because of the consistency of Fimo after firing, it does not paint as well as the more porous Sculpey clays. I am not saying that it is impossible to paint, just that it is designed to sculpt in the color that you want as opposed to painting after the fact.

Another good thing about Sculpey and coloring is that you can squish two colors together and knead them into another color. I mix white and bright yellow together all the time to make a butter yellow. I don't know if you can do this with Fimo. I think you can just because of the polymers it's made of, but it might be harder.

__________________
"Madness? This! Is! Cosplay!" --Corrupted quote from 300 (2007) using Movie Quote Generator
It doesn't matter if you use proper grammar, a flame is still a flame.
Creativity is a bit like pornography; it is hard to define, but we think we know it when we see it. (Mitchell, Inouye, & Blumenthal, 2003)

Other than that, it's a Mercedez-Benz vs. BMW debate, both are great but each has little things that some prefer over the other brands' option.

What they said... I went to a panel at Dragon Con this year about clay and its all personal preference and its depends on what you are doing with it.
Sculpy is the cheapest and I won't lie I use it a lot. Kato is going to be the hardest but is good for finer detail in your sculptures.

The guest speaker that I listened to said she switched sometimes when companies changed their forumlas for their clay. *shrug*

Wooden dowels and paperclay can both be found at most major arts & crafts stores like Joanns or Michaels. You can also find wooden dowels at hardware stores like OSH, Home Depot, or Lowes, usually in the lumber section.